Night Terrors
by heartforhumanity845
Summary: Poppy notices that Branch hasn't been the most alert and awake lately. Insisting that she stay the night to see what's wrong, she comes to find out that Branch still harbors unrelenting fears, and it's up to her to comfort him. Shameless, fluffy Broppy one-shot. Rated T for suggestive material.


**Hi all! I know most of you are dying for me to post my follow-up fic for Just As You Are, and I am pleased to tell you that it is in the works and will hopefully be up for your viewing pleasure by this time on Friday. Until then, I have whipped up a one-shot for you all, and as mentioned in the summary, it is SUPER fluffy and also a bit suggestive in content, so I would not suggest reading if you are underage. I apologize if this fic seems a little off for me, it was literally an idea that popped into my head a few days ago and I found it best to write it up before I lost it into the oblivion of my own mind.**

 **So, enjoy!**

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The first time Poppy noticed was trivial. She had been caught up in yet another one of her friend's extravagant parties and was up well past midnight that evening. As if it wasn't enough that she was Queen now and had many duties to attend to in running Troll Village, her friends seemed to bear down on her even harder to spend more time with them when she wasn't caught up in her tasks. She truly didn't blame them for their incessant need to hang out with her, they were still adjusting to her busy schedule.

As such, it left barely any time for the pink troll to even address or talk to the one troll she had wanted to spend alone time with since the Bergen victory. Her 'kinda' boyfriend Branch. The two had been official to everyone else for a while, but she threw in the 'kinda' because in the few weeks since they made it official, the two had only had time for one another a handful of times. Her being Queen and him being a hard-working troll who jumped at every volunteer opportunity he could get was not helping them in the slightest. She missed him, and wanted nothing more than to spend a quiet evening in his arms.

She thought on this yet again as she made her way back to the royal pod, the moonlight scarce but still able to cast her shadow upon the soft grass. Her hair was slightly mussed from the evening's activities, and she ran a hand through it wearily as she saw her abode come into view.

Just as she was about to climb up onto it, a dark form shifted out of the corner of her eye and she froze. Turning her head ever so slightly, she observed a lantern come into view, pouring amber light onto the face of the very troll she had been thinking about.

He looked apprehensive, almost afraid to be out in the dark. His eyes darted around warily to check for anyone around. Poppy watched him and dropped her hand from the railing. What was he doing out this late?

Her answer seemed to come when Branch moved slightly to the right, revealing a large bag that he drug across the dirt. She smiled, shaking her head. He must have run out of firewood. Even so, she wondered what compelled him to pursue his supplies at such an hour, since he usually ventured out to do so in the early morning. Not that she _knew_ that from watching him or anything…..

Ultimately, she brushed it off and disappeared into her pod, pushing the strange encounter to the back of her mind.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The second time Poppy noticed was quite a bit more direct, yet still unclear as to if what she believed it to be was the truth.

She had been sitting out in the schoolyard with the kids, making daisy and ivy crowns for all the girls while the boys had busied themselves in the brook nearby, getting each other sopping wet in a splash war. The Snack Pack and Branch had volunteered to join her just moments after she had started, which she happily accepted. However, the Queen began looking around in worry, as Branch had not come back from searching for more flowers to use.

"Do you think he's having trouble finding more?" She asked her friends.

"Only one way to find out." Biggie commented while still helping a little girl loop the stems of her daisies through. Poppy stood up, leaving her friends with the children while going on her own search for the missing troll.

She rounded the corner of the school pod, her pink orbs glancing back and forth for any sign of the blue troll.

"Branch?" She called out through cupped hands over her mouth. Hearing no reply, she pressed on into a particular field that lay behind the school.

A line of shrubs marked the border of either side, with magnolia trees sprouting haphazardly along them with a few varieties of weeds as well. Crickets and cicadas chirped loudly in the tall grass and among the tree's branches, with the mid-afternoon sun bearing down quite brightly on her head. She kept her eyes on the line of vegetation, noting the fact that some parts opened up to allow trolls to pass through with ease.

She neared a particular magnolia tree, noting how its flesh-pink petals fell randomly to the grass like a light snow. She began to see a burst of color at its base, and upon further inspection, she found Branch sprawled across the dirt face down.

"Branch!" She cried, running forward and kneeling to grab him by the shoulders to turn him over. While doing so, his eyes snapped open and he jerked himself upright.

"AH!" He yelped in surprise.

"Oh my gosh, what _happened?_ " Poppy fussed as he looked around to regain his bearings. Looking at her, he sighed.

"Ugh, nothing. I just dozed off, Poppy. That's all." He groaned, giving the back of his neck as vigorous rub before yawning. In his other hand was a handful of daisies that he had picked from a small cluster nearby, and he held them out to her.

"Here. I'm sure you guys needed these a while ago." He said, starting to stand up. However, when she did not take them from him immediately, he looked to her again. She was watching him closely, her eyes slightly narrowed and her eyebrows knit in concern.

He looked so…. _tired._ Completely worn down. It was very odd for him.

"Are you okay?" She asked softly, tilting her head in curiosity. He quickly looked away, rubbing his arm anxiously as he scrambled to find something to say that would get her off his back.

"I'm fine. Can't a troll doze off sometimes without being questioned?" He questioned, coming across as quite cold in manner. Poppy was taken aback slightly by the defensive words, but finally just shrugged and pulled herself to her feet.

"Well, thanks for the flowers. I guess I should go give them to the kids." She said, walking away and stealing a few glances back at him as she went. He seemed reluctant to let her go, but he did not follow her and instead turned to keep walking the other way.

 _What is_ _ **with**_ _him?_ Poppy thought to herself as she made her way back to the group.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The third time Poppy noticed was the final push she needed to convince herself to speak with him.

She had busied herself with going over plans for the next charity event with River, a troll who had been appointed as chief chairman of the event. He had given her an array of options and she was trying her best to choose one that would be the most fun for everyone involved. Cooper and Smidge were standing with her, giving their own two-sense about each idea.

"Honestly, I feel like a water balloon event would be _lots_ of fun for both the kids and adults." River suggested.

"Yeah, maybe we can even make a contest out of it!" Smidge said, who was quite the competitive spirit.

"Well I suppose, but that would take a bit more plan-!" River was cut off as Cooper nudged the Queen.

"Uh, Poppy." He mumbled. She looked to him and he jerked his head behind him. Upon turning about, she gasped as she spotted Branch atop a nearby flower.

The blue troll had volunteered to help clear pollen from the particular blooms, since it gave quite a few trolls some very bad allergies. He held a broom in his hand, which he leaned against rather unsafely as he snoozed. He was leaning at a dangerous angle, and she watched in horror as he continued to lean forward and began toppling to the ground. Everyone screamed, and Poppy wasted no time in running over and extending her hair out for him, wrapping it around his waist and pulling him to her.

They landed quite violently, which jolted Branch awake again and he looked around wildly.

"Poppy, what are you-? What is-?" He began to scold, squirming around in her grasp. She released his waist and just glared at him.

"Branch, what are you _doing?_ You could have seriously hurt yourself just now!" She scolded back, her eyebrows knitted together in frustration and panic. However, the blue troll only scowled and brought himself to his feet to brush himself off.

"We all make mistakes sometimes, Poppy. Can you just leave it alone?" He asked, starting to walk away. She clenched her fists. She was _not_ going to deal with this for a second longer.

"No, I will _not_ leave it alone." She replied, jogging to catch up with him as the two of them wandered away from the majority of the crowd and into a grove of dogwood trees nearby. "Branch, you've been like this for _weeks_ now. What's the matter?"

" _Nothing_ is the matter, Poppy. Just leave it alone!" He demanded again in a more biting tone. She frowned. Though the troll had regained his true colors, snippets of his past self still seemed to leak through from time to time and it worried the pink troll. It worried her that it would eventually make him revert back to his old self. His bitter self. She hated to see him upset….

She paused as something came to mind. It was a long-shot, but she figured that any kind of guess would get her further to the truth.

"Are you….having night terrors?" She asked.

"What? No. That's ridiculous. I'm doing just fine." Branch said almost immediately, crossing his arms and keeping his eyes away from her. She cocked a brow suspiciously, then shrugged.

"Okay, so you won't object to me spending the night with you tonight then." She said in a nonchalant manner.

" _What_? Poppy, no. That isn't necessary. I'm fine." Branch argued.

"Why not? You said there's nothing happening, so it'll be a piece of cake! It'll be a sleepover!" She bubbled, giving him a big smile. He did not return it, but instead let his frown deepen.

"No." He said, stomping away.

"I'm still coming over!" She called after him, earning a loud groan of frustration from him. She smirked. She was going to find out what was troubling him, whether he liked it or not.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

That evening, Poppy knocked on the door to Branch's bunker in her usual outfit. She had a small cinch bag on her back and a pillow hooked in her arm. Though they had all offered to build him one, Branch was still completely attached to his underground fortress and had insisted upon living there versus in a pod. A small personality trait that Poppy was willing to accept since he had become a lot more friendly with them all.

The door opened slightly, revealing Branch's crystal blue eyes peering up at her in a slightly annoyed fashion.

"What are the chances of you turning around and sleeping in your own pod tonight?" Branch asked. Poppy flashed a bright smile.

"None." She replied in a cheerful tone. He rolled his eyes and sighed, opening the door more and allowing her inside.

The inside of Branch's bunker looked almost exactly as she remembered it, with a few homier touches here and there. She eyed the deep blue throw rug that she had given him a few weeks back in a white elephant exchange. She smiled inwardly at that.

"So, what's the plan here, Miss Royalty? Are you going to be watching me sleep or something? Because I won't lie, that sounds a little creepy." Branch asked as he finished up re-locking the door.

"No. I'll just sleep nearby and if anything happens, I'll wake you up." She said gently.

"Great." Branch replied on fake enthusiasm. She just shook her head.

"There's a guest bedroom down the hallway. You can sleep in there." He said without looking to her again. Poppy started that way immediately, wanting to set her things down as soon as possible so she could continue to talk with him until they were tired.

Entering the quaint little room, she set her things upon the twin bed and stretched out her back, reaching up high with both arms in the air. She released a satisfied sigh, beginning to glance around.

It was just as a guest bedroom should be, delightfully neutral with a few picture frames hanging on the walls and a small nightstand with a lamp. Nearing one of the photographs, she giggled to herself. It was of Branch as a kid, giving a huge toothy grin where two holes could be seen where his front teeth should have been. He had been such a cute kid.

 _And grew into quite the handsome troll too._ She stopped herself, feeling a blush creep up her neck. It was no secret amongst anyone that Poppy and Branch had a connection, something that few trolls could claim to. He put up with her bubbly personality begrudgingly, but he was never ill-mannered towards her. She dealt with his grumpy bouts with grace and understanding, and it seemed as if the two completed one another in ways that even they could not understand.

However, they had not made any further advancements in their personal relationship since that night in Chef's cooking pot, and while it bothered Poppy, she knew things had to be taken slow when it came to Branch. After all, he had spent almost twenty-one years in the dark and gray of his past, and he was still adjusting. She took no offense, and quite frankly, she had accepted the fact that she had missed her shot months ago.

"What's so funny?"

She turned around to face Branch, who was leaning against the doorway and cocking a suspicious brow at her. She smiled, pointing to the frame.

"This picture. How old were you?" She asked. He uncrossed his arms, taking a few steps forward to have a better look and then cringed.

"Four." He replied, a bit of a blush creeping to his face in embarrassment.

"Awwwwh." Poppy doted, giving him a sweet smile. He rolled his eyes again, but she swore she could see the ghost of a smirk tugging at his lips.

"You wouldn't have been saying 'awwh' if you had been around me back then. Grandma had such a hard time keeping me in check. I was always wandering off and disappearing." He said, and she noted the slight sadness in his voice.

"Well, at least you kept her on her toes." Poppy joked, trying to lighten the mood. He breathed a chuckle through his nose, flashing her a tight smile.

"Yeah. You know, Poppy, I know it's early but I think I'm gonna turn in for a little while. I'll wake you if I get up." He said, giving his neck another rub.

"Okay. Sleep well, Branch." Poppy replied sweetly. He smiled again, this time with a grateful air about it.

"You too, Poppy." He mumbled.

It was strange. He had been so vehement about her not spending the night and yet…he had still let her in. Given her a bed to sleep on. Told her to sleep well. He was such a walking paradox at times….it both annoyed and intrigued Poppy to the nth degree.

The pink troll fought to stay awake for a long while, becoming very acquainted with the deep brown ceiling above her. She was sprawled across the bed in a haphazard fashion. A small thunderstorm had begun to take place outside, and the rain pitter-pattered along the ground above. There were no windows for her to look out of, and the darkness was beginning to take its toll on her eyelids. Slowly, they dragged them downwards, even though her mind was still abuzz with her task at hand. Her rigidity slackened, and before she could utter another mental protest, she had slipped away.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 _CRASH._

She jolted awake, panting wildly as the loud crack of thunder sent her heart into a frenzy. She ran a hand through her hair, looking around wildly for a source of light in the pitch black. Fumbling, she reached for the lamp and switched it on. Weak yellow light flooded the room, and she swung her legs over the side of the bed, holding a hand to her chest to calm herself down from the sudden sound.

However, the sound of something else caught her attention.

It was distant and weak, but her sensitive ears were still able to pick up on it. It sounded as if someone was crying out for help but was choking on the words to do so. Quickly she arose and crossed the room, gliding down the hallway with her ears on high alert.

The sound got louder and louder as she weaved through seemingly endless corridors. How Branch managed to never get lost in such an array of tunnels, she would never figure out. Finally, after making a sharp right, she stumbled upon the sound which had grew significantly. It came from the last door on the left, and with caution she padded forward.

Nearing the doorway, she peeked her head around to peer inside, and to her surprise she found that this room had a skylight overhead, casting a bluish-gray light over the room below.

There, laying on a queen-size bed, was Branch, topless and wearing just his patchwork shorts. He was completely glistening with sweat and his eyebrows were knitted together in panic. Poppy's eyes widened as he watched him thrash around wildly, mumbling to himself.

"No….no…I didn't mean to….NO…." He said, shaking his head ever so slightly, and Poppy slowly began tip-toeing towards him.

"AAAHH!" He screamed, making the pink troll jumped three feet in the air and almost lose her balance. She rushed forward after this, grabbing at his arms to keep him from swinging them about. He thrashed around in her grasp.

"No, GET AWAY FROM ME! LEAVE ME ALONE!" He cried.

"Branch." Poppy whispered, but he ignored it.

"I PROMISE I'LL NEVER SING AGAIN!"

"Branch!" She yelled, but nothing seemed to be working.

In a flash, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his firmly, holding a hand to his head to keep him there. His eyes shot open and he jerked away.

"Poppy, what the heck?" He cried, completely mortified as he shoved himself away.

"Well, you weren't responding to anything else, so I had to think of _something_!" She argued.

"Yes, but _kissing_ me? Are you serious?" He retorted.

"It woke you up, didn't it?" She pointed out, trying to ignore the pang of hurt in her chest at his displeasure in her method of waking him. Was she really _that bad?_ At his defeated glare she straightened her posture, pulling her leg a little further up onto the mattress and crossing her arms. "So, care to tell me what that was?"

"No." He snapped immediately. She sighed, slumping her shoulders.

"Why won't you tell me? It's obvious that this is what has been keeping you up at night." He did not respond, but instead turned his attention to the floor. She leaned in a little bit. "Branch, you _need_ sleep. And if you're not getting it, then there's a problem." She reached across to place a hand atop his. He slowly looked up to her, his mouth in a permanent frown.

"Please." She whispered. He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again.

"I may or may not be having nightmares about Grandma, okay?" He mumbled quietly, his gaze immediately snapping in embarrassment to his toes. Poppy relaxed completely at this.

"Is that _all?_ " She exclaimed. His eyes shot up to her again.

"Is _that all_? IS THAT ALL? Poppy, you're smarter than that, I _know_ you are. This is….this is horrible. I…..I thought I was _past_ all of this….I thought I was finally happy…." He said.

He had fought so hard to keep this from everyone, even her….because he _wanted_ to be that happy troll that everyone thought he had changed into once regaining his colors. He had shut her out, refused to talk about it because he knew that if he did, everyone would assume he was back to his old, paranoid self. And he would be alone once again. Left to wallow in his own misery.

Poppy's face fell to understanding and sympathy. As if reading his mind, she suddenly understood why he had been so guarded about this.

Gently, she reached forward again and took his hand in hers. He looked up, nervous as to what she would say. However, the look in her eyes made his heart pound.

"Branch…I'm never leaving you." She whispered. He inhaled deeply, electric running through his skin at her soft touch.

"Poppy, I…..I thought you…" He couldn't find the words to form, so she did it for him.

"Branch." She pulled herself the rest of the way up onto the bed, getting up on her knees and advancing towards him slowly. He backed up into the wall behind him, his heart going a million miles a minute. Poppy sat on her heels a few inches from him, taking his face into her hand.

"You could lose all of your colors again, become the village grump once more, push everyone away and be the nastiest troll ever…." She said, and she leaned in even further until they were mere centimeters apart. "….and I'd still be waiting at your doorstep for you to let me in."

At this, his breathing hitched and he could not move. She was so close, and it was with one final movement that she gently took his lips in hers, tender and cautious at first. He did not respond immediately, his mind an instant scramble at her intoxicating smell and soft strokes of her lips.

Poppy was alarmed at his frozen stature. He had not moved a muscle, and with reluctance she pulled away in defeat.

"I'm sorry….was that too mu-MMPH!" She said, crying out in a muffle as Branch crashed himself onto her, kissing her with such a fervor that it startled her to no end. His hands found her hips and the two engaged in heated movements that sent both of them into a high that they barely knew existed. Branch coiled an arm around her waist and slid her underneath him, wedging himself in between her legs and letting his weight press down on her just enough to establish dominance. Poppy did not mind in the slightest, letting out a strangled moan every now and again as they worked over each other for several moments.

"Branch….I…." She tried to squeak out through fevered kisses, but lost herself in his skilled touch.

"Poppy, for once….." Branch grunted out a moment later, leaning over to press his hot breath against her ear. "…just stop talking." His voice was gruff and low. It sent her over the edge and she submitted completely.

Their hair, mussed and completely unkempt, wrapped around each other tightly and knotted together in such a manner that it would be impossible to untangle themselves in the present moment.

Branch continued his journey over every part of her, running his hands along her sides and continuing to press his weight into her. Poppy panted softly in delight, trying to return the sensation with a stroking hand against his pectoral muscles. He was way stronger than any other troll she had seen, and she was completely amazed at the fact that such a hardened specimen had become the love of her life.

Each movement begged for the other's complete and undivided attention. Poppy had proclaimed her undying loyalty to him, and Branch begged her to prove it.

 _Prove that you won't leave me._ His lips begged with each stroke, his hands knotted tightly in her bright pink locks.

Poppy forcefully pulled herself away, moving her lips over to his ear, nipping at it gently. The groan that this produced made her smile devilishly, and she felt Branch begin to shake at the sensation. Unfortunately for him, she had long since talked about with her girlfriends about the various erogenous zones on a male troll, and knew that the larger the ears, the more sensitive they were. And Branch had a very fine set of ears.

Her hot breath sent a chill down his spine and he pressed himself as far as their bodies would allow, their sweat accumulating undoubtedly between their burning skin. Poppy reached up a hand and stroked at the back of his right ear, still nibbling and suckling gently at his left one and making him completely lose all sense of reality.

"Poppy….." He moaned into her neck, panting helplessly as she continued her assault on them. Using her other hand, she began stroking his back, raking her fingers along in a tantalizing manner.

"Branch…." She breathed back.

"You….the things you do to me…." He whimpered, and suddenly the tone he took on made her pull away and look into his eyes. There, she found that tears had begun to form in the corners, though he tried hard to blink them away. She brought both hands up to his cheeks, leaning her forehead against his as he still fought to regain a normal pattern of breathing.

"Hey, hey, hey, shhhhhh. It's okay. I'm right here." She whispered. It was not very often that she saw the troll in such a state, and she knew that it was time to take it down a notch. She nuzzled her face into his, closing her eyes and just reminiscing in his chest heaving against hers, their heartbeats strong.

"I meant what I said, Branch." She said sternly, noting his arms slightly tighten around her, as if he knew what she would say next. "I'm never leaving you. No matter what you do or say." She smirked. "You're stuck with me."

At this, Branch pulled away and for the first time since she had entered his bedroom, she saw his lips curve into a smile.

"Quite a wonderful punishment if you ask me." He replied. Poppy blushed at that, and she suddenly remembered the pain she had felt earlier.

"Hey, um….sorry for kissing you awake earlier. I know you probably didn't like that…" She said. He frowned, taking her face in one hand and tilting it to look in her eyes again.

"Poppy, there's a lot of things that annoy me. Make me uncomfortable." He said, leaning in ever so slightly with his eyes still on hers. "But I would take a thousand wake-up kisses from you than endure one second more of being alone in this bunker."

Poppy smiled, wrapping both arms around his neck and glancing between his lips and his eyes.

"You won't ever have to be again." She whispered, and the two simultaneously closed the gap between them, losing all reality and just reveling in the warmth and sensation of their love. Forever, and completely, inseparable.

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 **Okay, so this was kinda 'eh', but I hope to have more content for you guys here soon. Thanks again for reading and I hope you enjoyed this little fic! Have a wonderful day!**

 **Best regards,**

 **Heartforhumanity845**


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